On the Run
by Baby Kat Snophlake
Summary: Kratos and Anna are on the run with their baby when they come across someone who could just as easily be an enemy as an ally. ONE SHOT.


**EDIT-A/N:** For those who have already reviewed, thank you, I truly appreciate your feedback. But if you are new to this story, please do not review unless you have **constructive criticism** to give me. I don't want to be told how good I am or how much I sucked if you don't have a reason for saying so. I'd rather you say nothing at all if you can't tell me why you liked or hated something. If I am out of character, if my writing sucks, if my plot sucks, if my description sucks, if my dialogue sucks, if my style sucks, if my vocabulary sucks, if I'm not interesting you, if I put in a deal-breaker, if I irritated a pet peeve, if I am missing something, if I don't meet expectation, if you think I have potential but have too much to say, if you wish I had done something--anything-- differently, if you just plain hate what I've done with a character, plot, action, description, suspense, if I failed at an attempt at using a writing tool, if I have spelling errors, if I repeat words, if I use the wrong word, if the first sentence didn't grab your attention and you want to hit the back button, if I have grammar errors, or any kind of errors at all for that matter, if something is wrong or doesn't feel right and you just can't put your finger on it, if you hate my title or summary, even if all you can say is, "you want to know why, but I'm not sure so I can't tell you. It just doesn't work" **with a copy of the quote that doesn't work for you**, please do me the honor of telling me so, even if it's in the form of an email, PM, or review, I don't care how you do it, just tell me. Yes, I am begging for concrit. But please don't leave feedback that simply says "that was good. Nice job." I want to know the **why**. Thank you.

This story came to me as a sudden flash when I was thinking about Lloyd's babyhood. Enjoy!

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**On the Run **

**By Baby Kat Snophlake  
**

Kratos clasped a hand over the child's mouth to silence the boy's constant prattling. Before him, a procession of soldiers was marching along the main path through the Gaorracchia Forest towards Sybak. He could barely hear anything over the metal armor clanging and his heart pounding in his ears. He held the child closer to his body as he slowly backed away from the bushes that shielded him from view.

His heart stopped as quickly as his feet when a pair of soft blue eyes met his own. _What's he doing here?_ Kratos hesitated. _Is he going to call an alarm?_ As fast as his legs would carry him wasn't fast enough. If he didn't return to the camp to warn his wife, the whole family would be found, taken into custody, and most likely punished. The last fate in the world Kratos wished upon them.

Finally, his stomach plummeted at the most horrible sound that drowned out the noisy armor. It was the shouting behind him that was the call the officials were waiting for.

"Wait! I saw him!" That sounded like Yuan! Nothing in Kratos's memory could have hurt more than that moment of betrayal. He couldn't believe his best friend would disclose exactly where the Aurion family was hiding, but at the same time he had a feeling that this would happen. Now the pain of it all was struggling to surface like so many feelings Kratos had learned to suppress. Even Lloyd, the child in his arms was curious about the sudden rainfall.

He dove for a dry ditch where Anna had discovered would make an excellent hiding spot should the authorities come too close. The hiding spot included a tiny niche where Lloyd could easily be concealed so long as he remained silent. A hand clapped against his shoulder while an arm was wrapped around the front of his chest, almost crushing Lloyd against Kratos's chest.

"Stay down!"

"Anna?"

"Shh!" Silence.

Kratos stilled his breath, listening with every cell for the footfalls and shouting of the soldiers. He was surprised to hear the rustling of leaves and the birds chirping overhead. The soldiers _were_ following him weren't they? He stood up. Anna was still crouched down, cradling Lloyd's head and shoulders. To his surprise, the peaceful nature was all that surrounded his family.

"What happened?" Anna peeked over the bank of the ditch, half expecting to see the entire army standing over them with weapons drawn and demands. Her husband didn't hear her. His attention was focused on a spot where he could have sworn he saw movement. Every bit of instinct that he possessed was screaming at him to run, but his muscles refused. Even after his eyes caught sight of the blue-haired half-elven betrayer from the line of soldiers.

"Yuan." His lips curled into a low growl. Anna fell back to the ground, protectively cowering over her child. Yuan stepped closer unperturbed.

"Hey, Kratos. I was hoping to see you well." Yuan bent by the ditch, smiling down on the family with pride. "You seemed to have escaped once again."

Anna lifted her head, her eyes wide, and her jaw slightly dropped. Kratos relaxed. _So that's what happened._

"If they find out you lied about where we were heading, you'll be in a lot of trouble." He watched as his friend shook his head.

"I don't care. There's nothing they can do to me. Martel won't let her brother kill me." Yuan could only stare at the small changes he easily recognized in his friend. Kratos's eyes had softened and become much warmer. The passion for living had returned, along with a strong sense of protection. Such changes could only happen to a new father. "You and Anna aren't alone."

"No, we're not. Would you like to meet Lloyd?"

Anna finally lifted Lloyd up where he could be seen, obviously proud. "He's not very old, only a few months. Isn't he adorable?"

"Heh, he's a kid." Yuan stood up. Kratos watched a flash of jealousy replace the excitement in the younger man's eyes. It was well known that Yuan wanted nothing more than to settle down with his own family, but those dreams had been torn apart a long time ago. If it was still hurting Yuan that much though, he didn't really show the pain anymore. If anything had happened to Anna, Kratos was sure he would feel like the same empty shell that Yuan had appeared to be.

"You'd better return to your soldiers before they get suspicious." Kratos told him. Yuan shook his head.

"They won't get suspicious. They'll just think I got lost. They don't know I'm anyone important." To Kratos's surprise, Yuan held his hands out. "Let me see him." Lloyd smiled at the new face that peered over him. He reached up his tiny hands hoping to feel the stranger, only to be greeted with Yuan's index finger. Kratos watched closely, every movement, every breath, and every sigh that escaped the young man's eyes and lips.

"Thank you for helping us, Yuan."

Yuan fell out of his momentary reverie, snapping his eyes back to the young woman. With a light nod, he returned her baby to her arms and stood up. "Maybe I should be heading back." Before Kratos could say another word, Yuan vanished through the thick mess of trees and foliage. Anna smiled at her husband.

"You never told me much about your friend."

"I didn't realize he still considered me much of a friend." Kratos sighed as he sat down in a dip in the bottom of the ditch, his wife sitting beside him. "I abandoned him."

"I wish you wouldn't feel that way. It's extremely tough to tear such strong friendships apart. Why, I'll bet one of these days, Lloyd will save Yuan from Cruxis, and we won't have to worry about being on the run anymore!" Kratos smiled on the outside, but on the inside a weird "feeling" began to creep up. Did this feeling have a name? What was it?

Oh, yeah... Apprehension... Now why was that?

Let me know what you think, thanks!

Kat


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